Gait analysis in Lakeshire, MO. Gait analysis, alongside video motion analysis, is a way physical therapists and other healthcare professionals can assess your mobility to offer better care and get you back to the things you love most. Whether you’re an athlete healing from an injury or you’re trying to cope with chronic pain, gait analysis can be part of an overall, evidence-backed treatment plan that’s customized for your lifestyle and goals.

Your Lakeshire, MO physical therapist can use gait analysis to:

• Detect and address gait disorders
• Discover underlying musculoskeletal or nerve impairment that results in pain or affects movement health
• Measure and follow treatment outcomes
• Prevent and rehab injuries
• Prescribe orthotic or prosthetic devices
• Select footwear that’s comfortable and helps prevent injuries

At Axes Physical Therapy in Lakeshire, MO, our team of physical therapists are dedicated to one thing: getting you back to what you enjoy most. If you’re curious if gait analysis is right for you, call the Axes’ location closest to you or request an appointment through our website to get started with your treatment today.

What Is Gait Analysis?

When carried out by credentialed physical therapists, gait analysis is an assessment of how you move, specifically how you walk and run. By gaining precise information about how you walk and run, your physical therapist can offer insights into muscle imbalances, injury risks, the progress of injury rehabilitation, and more. Because our gaits our the result of a multitude of factors – strength, flexibility, coordination, vision, the vestibular system – gait analysis can provide a valuable look at what may be keeping you from living the life you want.

In a gait analysis appointment, your Axes physical therapist in Lakeshire, MO will look at:

• Step length and width
• Cadence (number of steps taken per minute)
• Foot and ankle alignment to see if you have tendencies towards pronation (inward rolling) or supination (outward rolling)
• Joint movement and range of motion
• Movement of the pelvis to see if there is excessive rotating or titling
• Stability, balance, and body sway (the amount of lateral movement)
• Step repeatability (the similarity of your steps)

With precise insights into your gait, your Lakeshire, MO physical therapist can personalize your treatment and help you get the most benefit for your movement health and fitness.

Who Gait Analysis Can Help in Lakeshire, MO

While gait analysis isn’t a treatment in and of itself, it provides crucial insights to your physical therapist about your mobility, allowing them to offer more focused and customized approach. As such, gait analysis can be advantageous for a wide range of people in Lakeshire, MO:

• Athletes seeking a performance boost — Correct form becomes crucial at the zenith of sports. Gait analysis allows athletes to improve their form, identify muscle imbalances and restricted mobility, and prevent injury.
• Athletes recuperating from injury — If you’re recovering from an ACL tear or other sports injury, gait analysis can be used to track how your recovery’s going and verify that your body is recuperating and gaining strength adequately.
• Anyone else recovering from injury — Whether you were injured on the job, involved in a car accident, or need post-surgical therapy, you don’t have to be an athlete to gain benefits from gait analysis in facilitating your recovery from injury.
• Runners — Whether you’re just starting out in a beginner running program or you’re a seasoned runner, gait analysis can help you in finding the appropriate footwear, which, coupled with additional insights from gait analysis, can enhance your speed, preserve energy, and lower the risk of injury.
• Amputees — Having a limb removed can drastically disrupt your movement health, as well as causing phantom pain. Gait analysis allows healthcare professionals to design and fit orthotic and prosthetic devices specifically designed to your body and lifestyle. It can also help you in adapting to your new device and optimizing its performance and convenience.
• Those suffering from neurological conditions — Parkinson’s disease, cerebral palsy, stroke, and various conditions can greatly impact our day-to-day functioning and movement health. Gait analysis enables healthcare professionals to track disease progression, judge treatment effectiveness, and guide rehabilitation strategies.
• Older adults — Our bodies naturally weaken as we age. This can result in an elevated risk of falling for older adults, in addition to degenerative conditions such as tendonitis and arthritis. Gait analysis can be beneficial in finding ways to alleviate pressure on painful joints, reduce injury risks, and examine the cognitive and motor facets of mobility health.

No matter the reason you’re considering physical therapy, whether it’s striving to finally run that marathon or simply enjoy your daily life without discomfort, Axes’ licensed physical and occupational therapists in Lakeshire, MO will employ gait analysis to customize your treatment, optimize your care, and help you in getting back to the activities you love.

Two Types of Gait Analysis

There are generally two primary types of gait analysis:

1. Qualitative gait analysis — Also known as clinical gait analysis, this approach entails a physical therapist personally observing your gait as you walk and via video recordings. It enables the physical therapist to acquire a broad overview of your mobility health and easily detect any observable patterns. Qualitative gait analysis utilizes the clinical expertise of the therapist to draw conclusions.
2. Quantitative gait analysis — Also known as instrument-assisted gait analysis, this approach employs specific technology, including sensors and motion capture software, to provide objective, quantifiable data about your gait. By employing precise numerical values, it enables more in-depth analysis and tracking of your progress over time.

Both qualitative and instrument-assisted gait analysis are suitable in the right situations and with specific patients. At Axes, our team in Lakeshire, MO possesses the capabilities and expertise to tailor our gait analysis services to address your particular needs.

Axes’ DorsaVi Video Motion Analysis in Lakeshire, MO

At Axes, our main focus is achieving positive patient outcomes and helping individuals in returning to what they love most. To accomplish this, we make use of every available tool that can help our patients in Lakeshire, MO. When conducting gait analysis in Lakeshire, MO, our highly skilled physical therapists employ innovative DorsaVi video motion analysis to offer both qualitative and quantitative analysis.

With DorsaVi video motion analysis:

• Sensors are positioned on your body that track your movement, muscle activity, and static postures
• DorsaVi’s software interprets that algorithmic information into useful information that your physical therapist can review
• During playback, your movements are slowed down to enable a more comprehensive analysis and examination of your movement
• Your Axes’ physical therapist integrates these insights with their professional observations to recommend effective, proven treatment modalities
• Your progress is continuously tracked over time and evaluated against the normal population as well as your previous sessions

Axes’ Approach to Gait Analysis in Lakeshire, MO

Axes Physical Therapy is dedicated to delivering our Lakeshire, MO patients with effective, safe, and scientifically validated treatment plans that fit their daily lives and objectives. Gait analysis can be incorporated into your customized treatment plan:

• To start the process, ask your doctor if gait analysis may be helpful for you, or visit any Axes’ location for a no-risk, no-obligation injury screening.
• We’ll perform a detailed history taking and assessment to gain insight into your goals, preferences, and medical history.
• We’ll create a team with you and your doctor, incorporating the insights from gait analysis into your holistic treatment approach, enhancing your mobility health, and promoting overall well-being.
• We’ll design personalized treatment plans incorporating methodologies that have been confirmed through research and scholarly studies, ensuring their success.
• In addition to offering physical therapy exercises, we’ll support you in selecting suitable footwear, braces, or other devices, while educating you on achieving proper posture and enhancing movement health, incorporating insights acquired from gait analysis.
• We’ll utilize gait analysis, alongside other measurable information and markers, to consistently evaluate your growth and modify your treatment plan as necessary.

Axes delivers much more than simply a list of exercises to complete. With decades of combined experience, professional knowledge, and advanced technologies at our fingertips, Axes provides a specialized team of physical therapists in Lakeshire, MO who are determined to provide excellent results in your treatment.

Other services we offer in Lakeshire, MO include:

• Neck Pain Treatment
• Physical Therapy Clinic
• Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Treatment
• Sciatica Treatment
• Sports Medicine
• Hand Pain Physical Therapy
• Foot & Ankle Pain Treatment
• Hip Pain Treatment
• Plantar Fasciitis Treatment
• Stroke Rehabilitation

Call Axes’ for Your Gait Analysis in Lakeshire, MO Today

Gait analysis is an invaluable tool that can significantly contribute to your overall well-being and movement health, whether that involves moving down the field or playing with your grandkids without pain. As we are committed to providing personalized, evidence-based treatment plans, we’re one of the limited number of clinics in the Lakeshire, MO area that offer video motion analysis. If you want to optimize your movement health, get in touch with the nearest Axes location or contact us online to determine if gait analysis in Lakeshire, MO is right for you.